Superman was my first hero.
I'm old enough to remember seeing the big screen version when it first came out some 20-plus years ago. I was a kid and recall seeing it with my brother and a family friend. I was blown away. Totally and completely blown away. In fact, back then, movie theatres weren't too enforcing on showings, so we lucked out and saw it about three more times at the same theatre. Each time was better than the last.
To this day, this version still holds the record as the film I've seen the most. I've seen it on TV, seen it on cable, seen it on videotape and now on DVD. Everything about this film I loved, from the epic scope of it all, the acting, the music (how can you not get chills hearing John Williams' theme) and the effects. I especially loved Christopher Reeve's performance most of all. As a kid, he was my first definition of a hero. I truly believed that he could fly. Of course, now we know better, but he still holds a place in my heart to this day, even after his tragic accident that left him paralyzed and eventually led to his untimely death.
So, almost 30 years later, we've got a new Man of Steel movie out now. "Superman Returns". And ever since word about this has come out and we've seen bits and pieces here and there about this. There's been two sides to this: those who really like it and those who are totally against it. I have two friends, Rob and Brandon, who have been against this from the start. Brandon has been the most vocal about it, especially about the suit and the acting, even though he hasn't seen anything aside from the trailers and certain scenes.
Now, later on today, I'll sit down at the theater and will see it for myself. I will decide if it sucks or not. And hey, this has a lot on the line. Especially with Brandon Routh, who has the most unenviable task of being in Reeve's shoes. Or suit as it were. Now, granted he looks a little like him, but anything he does in this film will be compared to what is arguably the best superhero performance ever captured on screen. I hope he does well. I want him to do well, but we have to just wait and see.
Not only will I be interested in seeing how Routh does, but I want to see how Bryan Singer does directing this film. He has a great respect for the original movie as well, since this version takes place in the period of the first two films. Now I know he has a great track record with the first two X-Men films, but this is Superman here. This is a whole different level. So we'll see how this goes. Especially when it comes to the story, which may tinker around with the mythology we've come to know over the years.
So when I sit down later on to see this, I'm going to be going over this with a fine tuned comb. Everything from the music, which I hear will take some of what Williams did and add on to it, to the acting (not just Routh, but Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane and Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor), to the scope and magnitude of the whole feature. Plus, this is going to be a long film too, over two and a half hours. Let's just hope the length means something and not just filler.
About a year ago on this blog, I talked about another DC Comics hero making a return to the big screen, and "Batman Begins" turned out to be a good movie. My pick for movie of the year last year. Will the same hold true for Superman, my first movie hero?
Will this movie suck or not?
I'm about to go and find out.
June 30, 2006
Movie Review: X-Men: The Last Stand
Here's another of my movie reviews. This one's for "X-Men: The Last Stand", the third movie involving the mutants from Marvel's hit comic book series.
Now I liked the first movie, and I really loved the second movie. In fact, "X2" was my pick for movie of the year when it came out in 2003. So going in, I had all the hopes that this one would hit it out of the park. Then came the changes, like Bryan Singer, who directed the first two X-films, leaving to do Superman Returns and Brett Ratner, whose films are hit or miss with me, taking over. Still with all that, I had hopes that this one would be good, especially after seeing the trailers.
Well after seeing it, it was good. But I had hoped it'll do so much more.
With the first two films, they got the ball rolling right off the start. With this, it was slow at first, key fight scenes should've been a lot longer, like they did with the first two. And the fights that they did have were short ones, not unlike the other films which were a lot longer.
With a lot of characters, both good and evil, in the storyline, there's always that fine line between having too many people and not enough screen time for them all. What they did with the third one was get rid of a lot of key people too soon and introduced others that didn't do enough. Now that was a disappointment.
What I did like was Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, who always delivers with each X-film, and I'm sure he'll do the same with his own spinoff film. I was impressed by Kelsey Grammer (TV's Frasier) as Beast. At first, I had my doubts, but his peformance was quite good and he definitely proved me wrong. Ian McKellen as Magneto was another one who always delivers with his role and I liked some of the X-kids portrayals as well.
It wasn't as much about the actors that I didn't like, it was the fact they short-changed some of them, made little use of others and introduced some that was totally unneccessary. In my opinion, I think they crammed too much story and had not enough action.
Still, I liked the film. It was good, but it had the potential to do so much more. I believe that each sequel should improve upon it's previous film. And although this one was OK, The Last Stand didn't improve upon "X2" in my mind. Which was a shame really, cause I had hoped this would be the best film of the summer.
Now I liked the first movie, and I really loved the second movie. In fact, "X2" was my pick for movie of the year when it came out in 2003. So going in, I had all the hopes that this one would hit it out of the park. Then came the changes, like Bryan Singer, who directed the first two X-films, leaving to do Superman Returns and Brett Ratner, whose films are hit or miss with me, taking over. Still with all that, I had hopes that this one would be good, especially after seeing the trailers.
Well after seeing it, it was good. But I had hoped it'll do so much more.
With the first two films, they got the ball rolling right off the start. With this, it was slow at first, key fight scenes should've been a lot longer, like they did with the first two. And the fights that they did have were short ones, not unlike the other films which were a lot longer.
With a lot of characters, both good and evil, in the storyline, there's always that fine line between having too many people and not enough screen time for them all. What they did with the third one was get rid of a lot of key people too soon and introduced others that didn't do enough. Now that was a disappointment.
What I did like was Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, who always delivers with each X-film, and I'm sure he'll do the same with his own spinoff film. I was impressed by Kelsey Grammer (TV's Frasier) as Beast. At first, I had my doubts, but his peformance was quite good and he definitely proved me wrong. Ian McKellen as Magneto was another one who always delivers with his role and I liked some of the X-kids portrayals as well.
It wasn't as much about the actors that I didn't like, it was the fact they short-changed some of them, made little use of others and introduced some that was totally unneccessary. In my opinion, I think they crammed too much story and had not enough action.
Still, I liked the film. It was good, but it had the potential to do so much more. I believe that each sequel should improve upon it's previous film. And although this one was OK, The Last Stand didn't improve upon "X2" in my mind. Which was a shame really, cause I had hoped this would be the best film of the summer.
Movie Review: Mission: Impossible 3
I've been lacking with the movie reviews lately, so let me get caught up with the first movie I saw earlier this summer, "Mission: Impossible 3"
Now, ever since the movie version of the long running TV series came out, it's always been hit or miss with me. Either the action's OK and there's a lame plot, as was the case with the first one. Or the action was good and the plot was really lame, as was the case with the second. Now, I like Tom Cruise's takes in both films, but I knew that somehow, sooner or later, there would be a sequel that would deliver the goods.
They finally did it with the third one.
Now going in, I had hope that it would work because J.J. Abrams, the man behind the hit drama "Lost"(one of my favorite TV shows) and "Alias" (another one of my favorites, which just concluded its run in May) was writing and directing this film. Knowing his track record, especially with "Alias", which was another spy drama, I had a feeling that maybe we have a version of this film with a plot and good action.
My feeling was right.
From the opening sequence, which definitely had me on the edge of my seat right until it kicked into the always cool M: I theme music (which thankfully never gets old after all these years), the film was off and running. Something they never did with the first two films. Now, as was the case with other spy dramas, you have the plot that's kind of out there. But unlike the first two films, where you really didn't care what it was about, at least this time they had a plot device that was more personal ( where a fellow agent met an untimely fate at the beginning) and it also raised the stakes, where the girlfriend of Cruise's character had her life put on the line thanks to the dangerous job that Cruise gets to do.
Another thing that made it different from the first two films was the fact that we had a villian that was a villian that matched Cruise every step of the way. I give great credit to Philip Seymour Hoffman (fresh off his Oscar win a few months earlier) for really taking the role head on and made you want to hate him. The scenes where he and Cruise matched wits were electric, especially in the opening sequence.
Overall, the action scenes were great, including a high flying helicopter chase and a great sequence along the highway bridge highlighted by explosives and car chases. And the supporting cast were good as well. There were also some humorous moments that didn't feel forced or anything.
So, by far, the third film of the series was finally the charm as this was the best of the franchise. If Cruise is smart, since he's also one of the producers of these films as well, he would ask Abrams to do the fourth edition of the series if the need calls for one.
Now, ever since the movie version of the long running TV series came out, it's always been hit or miss with me. Either the action's OK and there's a lame plot, as was the case with the first one. Or the action was good and the plot was really lame, as was the case with the second. Now, I like Tom Cruise's takes in both films, but I knew that somehow, sooner or later, there would be a sequel that would deliver the goods.
They finally did it with the third one.
Now going in, I had hope that it would work because J.J. Abrams, the man behind the hit drama "Lost"(one of my favorite TV shows) and "Alias" (another one of my favorites, which just concluded its run in May) was writing and directing this film. Knowing his track record, especially with "Alias", which was another spy drama, I had a feeling that maybe we have a version of this film with a plot and good action.
My feeling was right.
From the opening sequence, which definitely had me on the edge of my seat right until it kicked into the always cool M: I theme music (which thankfully never gets old after all these years), the film was off and running. Something they never did with the first two films. Now, as was the case with other spy dramas, you have the plot that's kind of out there. But unlike the first two films, where you really didn't care what it was about, at least this time they had a plot device that was more personal ( where a fellow agent met an untimely fate at the beginning) and it also raised the stakes, where the girlfriend of Cruise's character had her life put on the line thanks to the dangerous job that Cruise gets to do.
Another thing that made it different from the first two films was the fact that we had a villian that was a villian that matched Cruise every step of the way. I give great credit to Philip Seymour Hoffman (fresh off his Oscar win a few months earlier) for really taking the role head on and made you want to hate him. The scenes where he and Cruise matched wits were electric, especially in the opening sequence.
Overall, the action scenes were great, including a high flying helicopter chase and a great sequence along the highway bridge highlighted by explosives and car chases. And the supporting cast were good as well. There were also some humorous moments that didn't feel forced or anything.
So, by far, the third film of the series was finally the charm as this was the best of the franchise. If Cruise is smart, since he's also one of the producers of these films as well, he would ask Abrams to do the fourth edition of the series if the need calls for one.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
